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I write fantasy for tweens and teens. I blog about books and writing and occasionally travel and homeschooling.

My world of Aluvia series is with Curiosity Quills Press, and is an upper-middle grade fantasy, well-suited for ages 11-14, though all ages can enjoy it. FAIRY KEEPER, MER-CHARMER and DRAGON REDEEMER each stand-alone but are best read as a series. My fourth book will be releasing with Blaze Publishing this summer, called THE WORST VILLAIN EVER.

This is a family-friendly site. Note: There are some spoilers in a few of my book reviews, primarily the ones done for my grad school classes. I do warn readers with a big, "SPOILER!" announcement on the review.

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Friday, June 27, 2014

CINDER, by Marissa Meyer

Meyer, Marissa. (2013). Second ed. Cinder: Book One of the Lunar Chronicles. Square Fish.

Summary:

Cinder is a mechanic cyborg, a second-class citizen in New
Beijing. A deadly plague is killing
people all over the world, but not the Lunars, the formerly human-but-now-psychically-gifted
race that lives on the moon. Cinder’s
job leads the prince to her in an effort solve a mystery with his robot, one
that involves secret information that could change the future of their
world. The prince and Cinder begin to care
for each other, but the Queen of the Lunars wishes to marry him. Otherwise, she might just go to war with
earth. With enough similarities to the fairy tale to make readers smile, this
story is a tale all its own.

Analysis:

SUPER clever premise.
I love, love, love having a “Cinderella’ who is A) a cyborg and B) a
mechanic. I mean, wow, where was THIS Cinderella
when I was a kid? It’s a lot of fun to
see all the ties to the original fairy tale, done in such a unique way. The replacement for the pumpkin is great, as
is the “new” version of the glass slipper that gets left behind. The only complaint I have, which isn’t really
a complaint, is that I figured out the Big Reveal/Big Twist that shows up at
the very end…when I was 1/3 of the way through.
So it was a bit more predictable than a pure five star review would
merit, BUT it’s a YA book that is also appropriate for upper middle grade, so
it might be that the intended audience wouldn’t be able to guess so soon. I’m actually going to have my 10 year old
read it, because she wants to read Twilight and the Hunger Games now that she’s
chewed through Percy Jackson and Harry Potter, and Cinder is far better than
Twilight or the Hunger Games for her age, I think, with minimal romance, no bad language and hardly any violence. There is a plague, but even that isn’t very
gory.

I see why these books are checked
out all the time at the middle school and high school library. It’s an easy read-I read it in one sitting—and
I gave it 4 stars on Goodreads. I almost
gave it 5 stars, but I really reserve the five stars for books that truly WOW
me on multiple levels. It’s hard to get
five stars from me, but this one is like a 4.5 out of 5. A solid, fun read that I would recommend to
students and friends in a heartbeat.

Reviews:

"Debut author Meyer
ingeniously incorporates key elements of the fairy tale into this first series
entry." --Horn
Book Magazine

"First in the Lunar
Chronicles series, this futuristic twist on Cinderella retains just enough of
the original that readers will enjoy spotting the subtle similarities. But
debut author Meyer’s brilliance is in sending the story into an entirely new,
utterly thrilling dimension. –Publishers Weekly,
Starred Review

“There’s a lot of moving
parts in this fresh spin on “Cinderella,” the first in a four-book series.” –Booklist

“Fairy tales are becoming
all the rage, with the TV showsOnce Upon a Time andGrimm spinning them through a modern
filter. The 26-year-old Meyer's debut novelCinder, though, combines a classic folk tale with hints
ofThe Terminator andStar Wars in the first book ofThe Lunar Chronicles young-adult series due out Jan. 3.” -USAToday.com

If you like Cinder, you might also enjoy The Selection, by Kiera Cass, or The Scorpio Races, by Maggie Stiefvater (links to my review of that book). And actually, dare I say, you might enjoy my book, Fairy Keeper, when it comes out in 2015. :)